To Have a Heart
by Konton
Summary: It's been two years. Sora wanders the beach of the island alone. Its on this island that Sora makes an unexpected discovery. AxelSora Based on a RP I'm doing.
1. Awakening

**Prologue: Awakening**

****

Darkness; that was all he knew. He'd lost track of space and time. He couldn't remember fire, or light, or sound. He couldn't remember how to feel, because there was no feeling left. There was nothing, and it was slowly eating away at what mind he had left, leaving him in agony. He wanted to die… but he couldn't die. He couldn't do anything.

'If only I could see him again… Just one more time….'

* * *

Sora sighed as he walked slowly along the beach. Nothing much had changed with the boy, as appearances went. He was a bit taller, though not much, and he wore simple clothes; a black T-shirt and ragged jeans. He still had a slightly childish face, his big, blue eyes reflecting the innocence that he refused to let go of. His hair was still sticking out in any direction it could manage. 

He stopped, looking at a shell at his feet. It was the same kind of shell that Kairi had made that keychain out of. He kicked it aside with a frown and kept walking.

The biggest difference wasn't Sora's appearance. The biggest difference was that he was alone. No friends walked beside him. In fact, no one seemed to be on the island at all. The old island with its shabby forts was deserted, save for the brunette boy that walked idly along its beaches.

* * *

It hurt more than anything he'd ever felt before. There was a deep pain burning deep in his chest. This pain… this horrible pain confused him. It wasn't physical. It hurt so badly that it was choking him. Or, it would have, if he could breathe to begin with. What was this pain? He couldn't understand. 

'I want to see you… I want to talk to you just once more…. Please…'

"Sora…"

* * *

It was getting windy. Sora looked out into the ocean, the warm wind blowing his hair and clothes about, and watched the waves crashing on shore. He shied back when the spray of salt started to burn his eyes. He shielded them as he turned away with another frown. He got frustrated when the sand started to nip at him, biting his skin with the passing gusts. With an aggravated sigh, he looked around. His eyes landed on the 'secret spot'. He frowned again. He didn't want to go there unless he had to. But… the shack didn't look like it'd do much against the sand. The tree top house… well, Tidus had put a hole through that last year. That one was out. He could go to the cave, but that was on the other side of the island. 

Sighing in defeat, his eyes traveled back to the Secret Spot. "I might as well," he said as he started to it.

* * *

The pain… it was getting worse. It wasn't just in his chest anymore. It was spreading through his whole body, engulfing him slowly. 'Is this what it feels like to be burned?' he wondered. The pain was real now. It wasn't that mysterious choking feeling that had engulfed him where his heart… would have been. No, this one was a true, physical pain. He tried to cry out, but no sound could come from him. He couldn't open his mouth, or even make his finger twitch. At least, he didn't think he could. It was hard to tell. His thoughts were interrupted by another wave of pain. This time, he actually screamed.

* * *

Sora was heading for the hidden cave beneath the large tree when he heard it. It was faint, but… A scream? He sped up, darting into the tunnel to where the sound came from. He squinted. It was dark and hard to see, but… was something there? Was something in front of the door with no handle? He stepped closer, but stopped and shielded his eyes as a bright flash filled the cave with intense, white light. He yelped, falling back onto his backside.

* * *

It was unbelievable! The pain was unbearable. It was eased slightly by the cold of the stone beneath that slowly seeped through his cloak to reach him. His breath came out in ragged pants, each one taking its toll on his lungs. Then, all at once, it hit him. He was breathing! And there was something cold beneath him; an uneven stone floor! He forced an eye to open. He saw crudely drawn carvings covering the walls of what appeared to be a cave before he snapped his eyes shut. What little light there was in the cave was blinding to the eyes that had only seen darkness for so long. Then he heard something. His already tense body tensed further. 

Quiet footsteps drew slowly closer. "Can it... Could it be… you?" he heard a strangely familiar voice breathe.

Whoever it was, they didn't seem to be hostile. He wouldn't have cared if they were, if it meant that the pain would go away. He forced his arms to move so that he could hold his throbbing head. "Make it stop. Make the pain stop, please…" he whispered. "Make the light stop." The small markings under his eyes looked more like tears than ever, because that was exactly what he wanted to do. He couldn't, though. Nobodies weren't able to cry. It wasn't allowed. Despite this, a droplet of water fell from the corner of his tightly shut eye.

* * *

Sora didn't know how to deal with this. He didn't know how to react or what to do. Without thinking, he reached out, placing his hand on Axel's forehead, hoping this would help the man. 

Axel's eye cracked open a bit, but he closed it again before he could see who had spoken. "Who…?" he croaked, his voice raspy and coarse from disuse.

"S-Sora…"

* * *

I know it's kinda short, but this is just the beginning thing. The set up. XD 

Deal with it!


	2. Chapter 1: Returning to the World

Alrighty, at the top of every chapter, I think I'll add responses to all the comments I've received at the time of posting the story. Just to show I love you guys, however few there may be.

One Winged Kharl Sama; ch 1: Of course it was vague! Nothing happened yet! XD And it'll get

longer… See? This chapter is longer. XD I already responded to you in person, so this is rather pointless, isn't it? Lol. Oh well.

REIzor Image; ch 1: Really? You like the way I write? –grin- XD Yeah, sorry that

first bit was so short. It was just a good place to stop for the set-up, you know? XD I hope this one's long enough! Thanks for reading! Yay Sora/Axel. XD 3

And that's it. --; Hopefully there'll be more by the next chapter.

**Chapter One: Returning to the World**

"S-Sora…" came a soft, almost scared voice. The hand on his forehead trembled gently. Axel's brows furrowed in confusion. Sora? But that would mean… He stole himself up, and slowly, carefully, opened his eyes. The light wasn't nearly as blinding anymore, and the slender brunette slowly came into focus. "So it is," he said, almost in awe. He managed a small smile. "Long time, no see," he said.

"Ye-yeah…" Sora managed to squeak. He cleared his throat and continued a bit stronger. "But, how are you here? I'm… I'm not dreaming, am I?" Sora asked, his voice getting fainter as he spoke. He removed his hand, not sure if Axel would appreciate being touched by him.

"I doubt it," Axel said softly. "If this were a dream, I don't think I'd be in so much pain…" The pain grew some as Sora removed his cool hand. He wished the boy would put it back, but didn't dare ask. "As for how I'm here," he said, looking around. "I'm not even sure where here is, so I couldn't tell you." He closed his eyes for a moment, letting them rest. "How long… was I gone?" he said quietly, almost afraid of the answer. He let his eyes stay closed.

Sora closed his eyes, feeling a deep sadness for the man on the stone floor in front of him. He wished there was something he could do. Something to ease the pain the Nobody felt. Something to turn back time. He looked at the red-head again as he spoke. "About two years," he said softly. "But I never forgot about you, so you don't have to worry about that." He blushed a bit, feeling stupid. He laughed a bit in his embarrassment, and hoped that Axel hadn't caught how stupid he'd sounded.

"Two years?" Axel breathed, his eyes still closed. He frowned at the thought. What all had happened while he was away? Was Sora still fighting? Was it over?

"Kairi still remembers you, too." He paused. "I… I told her that you were sorry, like you asked me to. I think she cried a little, but she forgives you." He nearly jumped when he saw a small smile form on the fire-wielder's lips. 'Maybe I saw wrong…' he mused, because as soon as he spotted it, it was gone.

He cleared his throat softly and continued. "I never did get to thank you… for saving me that d—"

"No need," Axel interrupted with a frown. He opened his eyes to look at Sora's face as he spoke again. "It doesn't mean much for an empty shell to die for someone."

Sora's frown mirrored Axel's. Sure, Nobodies were just empty shells… They didn't have hearts or feelings, so it shouldn't matter… but for some reason, it did. He just couldn't think of Axel as just another empty shell that shouldn't exist. Maybe it was because the tall, skinny Organization member had seemed so… human. Sora shook his head, but didn't comment on what Axel had said. "We should find you someplace to rest," he said. He leaned over Axel, but didn't touch him.

Axel sighed, suddenly feeling very old. "Sorry, Sora. I don't think I can really move much right now," he said, exhaustion evident in his voice.

"Alright then… I'll just… have to stay here with you then," Sora said, then added in a rush, "Unless you'd rather be alone…." He bit his lip. He didn't want to go. He wanted to make sure that Axel would be okay. "I…" 'I never want to see you fade away again…' He cleared his throat, pushing the thought aside. "I just want to make sure you'll be okay… that's all… But, I'll leave you alone if you want me to."

"All that trouble for a Nobody?" Axel asked bitterly. He gave a dry laugh, though it was cut short by a series of coughs that sent pain through his chest. He vaguely registered the feel of hands resting comfortingly on his shoulders, barely felt through his leather cloak. He relaxed and smiled thankfully to Sora who removed his hands again. "Actually… I would… like some company, if it's all the same," he said.

"You're more than just a Nobody to me," Sora said softly. Axel didn't hear him. Sora looked at Axel for a few moments silently, then moved his gaze away from him. "Nothing's the same anymore, Axel," he said sadly.

Axel looked up at him confused. "How much could have happened?" he asked, then instantly looked irritated with himself. "Okay, that was a stupid question," he sighed. He relaxed a bit and looked at Sora evenly. "What happened?"

Sora forced a bright smile. "Everyone close to me feels very distant lately," he said, pretending to be okay with it. As he spoke, his forced smile seemed to get brighter.

Axel's eyes softened. "What happened?" he asked again. As he spoke with Sora, the concern he didn't even realize he felt for the boy made him forget about the pain that coursed through his body.

Sora started a bit. It seemed he hadn't noticed he'd spoken. "Huh? Oh… nothing really," he said, his grin faltering. "Forget I said anything." He continued to smile, though now emptiness was apparent in his deep blue eyes. The same eyes grew distant, as if the keyblade warrior was lost deep in thought. He was startled out of them when a hand touched his. He looked down to find a gloved hand covering his. His eyes followed the hand, moving to Axel's eyes. Axel held his gaze.

"I'm… so tired…" he sighed, his eyes closing slowly, though he fought to keep them open. He wanted to comfort Sora, but he couldn't stay awake much longer. His weary gaze was already starting to blur.

Sora took more comfort in Axel's touch than the Nobody realized. He smiled gently, sadly, and returned the grip on Axel's hand, interlacing their fingers. "Then you should sleep. You'll feel lots better if you do," Sora said softly, his eyes still gazing gently at Axel's face.

"Will you…" Axel asked, starting to fade into sleep, "still be here when I… when I wake up…?" He didn't hear any answer that Sora gave as he fell asleep soon after he'd spoken.

Sora watched Axel's face relax in sleep, frowning slightly. He'd stay awake all night, if only to make sure Axel would be able to wake in the morning. Sora tightened his grip on Axel's hand. "Don't every fade away again. I don't want to be alone anymore…" he said softly.

And so time passed, the afternoon sliding into night, then to day again. Sora kept his eyes open the entire time, watching Axel sleep in silence. Every so often he moved his hand in front of the fire-wielder's lips to make sure he was still breathing. He'd relax when he felt the hot breath whisper against his skin, making it tingle softly. The night was chilly, but Sora didn't notice. Axel was warm, and being so close to him was enough to fight off the chill of the rest of the cave.

As the night wore on, it became harder and harder for Sora to keep his eyes open. By the time the birds started to chirp with the dawning of the sun, Sora was barely sitting. He'd lean forward, his eyes sliding closed, then he'd catch himself and shoot back up again. He rubbed his eyes with his free hand and yawned. His other hand still clutched Axel's. He couldn't feel his fingers anymore because of it, but he didn't care. He shook his head to wake himself up. He wasn't sure how much longer he could fight off sleep.

Axel showed no signs of waking, even when the signs of morning floated into the cave. It wasn't until a beam of light fell directly on his eyes that the Nobody woke. With a yelp of pain, the hand that didn't hold Sora's shot to cover his eyes. He groaned, clearly not happy with this style of awakening.

Sora was startled, but showed concern for the fiery red-head that lay beside him. "H-hey, are you alright?" he asked, his fatigue present in his voice.

"I'm fine… I think," Axel said, getting his breath back from being startled awake from such a deep sleep. He moved his hand from his eyes, squinting against the light, to cover his mouth as he yawned. "How long was I out?"

Axel's yawn made Sora yawn tiredly. "You slept all night," he said with a light laugh. "Think you can move yet?"

"I think so," Axel answered. With a pained groan, Axel forced himself up, leaning heavily on his arms. His back popped painfully several times, stiff from not moving for so long, then spending a night on a hard, stone floor. He made it most of the way up before his elbow decided to give out beneath him. The weight that was placed on his other arm made that one give out soon after. He fell back with a startled gasp.

Sora moved automatically, darting behind Axel to catch the slender man. "Hey! Take it easy!" he breathed, looking down at the other. He helped Axel into a sitting position and moved away, keeping a hand on the other's back to keep him up if he fell again. He laughed a little. "I was asleep for a year in a little egg, and I didn't have this much trouble," he teased lightly. He laughed, then coughed awkwardly when he realized he wasn't funny.

"Yeah, well you still existed," Axel reminded him grumpily. "And it's been two years, thank you very much."

"Alright, alright!" Sora said. "Sorry." He smiled. "You wanna try to move again?" he asked.

"Hmm… I think I might want to try outside," Axel said softly. He could barely remember outside. What did the wind feel like? He still didn't even know where he was. He assumed that he was on Destiny Islands, figuring that was where Sora would be if the fighting was over, as it seemed to be. He'd only been to the Destiny Islands once, and it was only briefly; to kidnap Kairi. He was distracted from his thoughts as he felt Sora's arms wrap around his waist again as they had when the boy had caught him earlier.

"Ready?" Sora asked softly. Axel nodded after a moment's hesitation. Sora brought Axel's arm around his shoulder. Holding it, and keeping his other arm around Axel's waist, he slowly eased Axel up. This was rather difficult. Not because Axel was heavy, but because he was so tall. In all honestly, his cloak probably weighed more than Axel did. That thought brought his attention to the cloak. It was then that he finally noticed it; the cloak wasn't black anymore. In fact, it was a bright white. "Axel… your cloak…"

"Yeah, what about it—Holy shit!" Axel said, looking down at his unfamiliar garb. "What the…"

Sora grinned at him. "Wow. It's weird to see you not wearing black," he said teasingly. "Looks good on you."

"Really?" Axel said, doubtingly. He wondered what he looked like with his new attire. 'Probably like a half-dead guy in a white cloak with red hair,' he thought with a mental sigh. 

By then they'd been standing for a little while, and it was starting to make Axel a bit queasy. His face paled.

"Hey, are you alright?" Sora asked, looking up at the man concernedly.

Axel looked like he wanted to throw up, but he nodded. He wanted to see the outside. He couldn't stand to stay in this stuffy cave for much longer. He needed wind.

Sora nodded gently and slowly, carefully, helped Axel walk outside. Now that the taller boy was up, he could keep him that way, supporting him easily despite how heavily Axel had to lean on him to keep his knees from buckling beneath him.

Axel had prepared himself for the light that was to come, but not the sound. The myriad sounds of the island hit him all at once. He let go of Sora to cover his ears. This, unfortunately, made him lose his balance, and Sora's grip on him wasn't enough to steady him. The Nobody fell to his knees with a soft yelp.

Sora, once again, had no idea what to do. He knelt beside the quivering red-head and wrapped his arms around him comfortingly. "Shh…" he said softly. "It's okay. It'll be okay."

Axel leaned into Sora, pressing his ear against the brunette's chest as Sora's hand came to cover the other one. The sounds of the island ebbed away, and were replaced with the soft, steady beating of Sora's heart. "I can hear it… Your heart…" Axel said wearily, feeling rather stupid. 

Sora smiled gently and held Axel a little closer. "Well that's good," he said.

Axel smiled gently and even laughed a little, startling himself a bit.

"I can hear your laugh," Sora said teasingly, using a mockery of Axel's previous tone. He laughed at Axel's glare.

"Oh, ha ha," Axel said sarcastically, feeling even more stupid.

Sora just laughed. He pulled away and stood. He offered Axel his hand with a grin. "Not as strong as you used to be, are you?" he asked teasingly. He was rather enjoying being on the other side of the teasing for once, giving it instead of receiving it.

Axel took the offered hand with a sly smile. With a fair amount of force, he tugged at Sora's arm, making the boy fall down with a yelp. His strength was returning quickly now that he'd rested, and started to move. It wasn't nearly at 100 yet, but it was getting better.

"Alright, alright," Sora said. "I was wrong." He didn't notice that he'd ended up falling on top of the white-clad man.

"I'm strong enough, I'd say," Axel said smugly.

"Alright, then why don't you get up?" Sora challenged.

"Because you're lying on top of me," Axel said calmly.

"What? Are you too weak to lift me?" Sora asked with a smirk.

Axel's smug look didn't falter. He slid his arms around Sora, his bottle-green eyes gleaming slyly. "No, I'm just really comfortable," he sighed.

Sora's face turned a deep red, and he tried unsuccessfully to hide it. "W-Whatever. You just can't do it," he said. He stuck his tongue out at Axel tauntingly.

"Maybe I just don't want to," Axel said. "You can't prove that it isn't true."

"Oh? And why wouldn't you want to?" 

"Because the sun is shining so wonderfully," Axel said. He leaned back a bit more into the sand, closing his eyes and basking for a moment. The warmth felt so wonderful after the cold of the cave.

"Well of course it is!" Sora said, instantly feeling stupid. He chuckled softly. "But that doesn't seem like something you'd say."

"I've spent the last two years floating aimlessly in a deep, cold, black abyss of nothingness. Right now, I like everything," Axel said calmly.

Sora looked at him oddly. "I always thought that Nobodies would prefer a black nothingness. I guess… I was wrong?"

"Just because that's what we're made of doesn't mean we have to like it," Axel pointed out.

Sora frowned. "I never thought of it like that…" he mused. He sighed, the frown ebbing away. Forgetting for the moment he was on Axel still, he let his head rest on the other's chest as he enjoyed the sun along with him.

For the moment, the two of them were content in their comfortable silence.

There! It's a bit longer. XD So, you'd better be happy! Don't expect me to always update this quickly, though. I'm just really bored right now, so yeah. XD

This'll probably end up like my other stories; I'll get half-way through it, then I'll loose interest, or I'll just forget about it. XD

You guys better send lots of reviews if you don't want that to happen!!!! DX

Oh, and if this sucks it's because I didn't read it. I just typed it and posted it. XD


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